Stage 10 Overview

Annecy to Le Grand-Bornand

Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Stage Summary

On stage 10 the race will finally enter the Alps, covering 158.5 km over three Category 1 climbs and seeing the first Hors Categorie (beyond category) climb of the tour. Starting along the shores of lake Annecy, riders will turn into the mountains to contend with the Col de la Croix Fry (C1), and the unpaved Plateau des Glières (HC), before tackling both the Col de Romme and la Colombière (both C1) in quick succession before a downhill finish in le Grand Bornand.

Stage 10 saw a strong 21-man break which at one point gained over six minutes on the peloton. Among the eventual survivors were Julien Alaphillipe (Quickstep Floors) who won the stage solo, and yellow jersey Greg Van Avermaet (BMC), who managed to extend his lead today over other GC contenders. Froome, Valverde, Yates, Landa, and Uran all finished together, though Uran appeared to be struggling by the final climb.

Stage Analysis From Best Bike Split

The first stage in the Alps will be a great showcase of rider fitness. While the Plateau des Glières climb (HC) with its unpaved section might be the highlight of the stage visually, the final two climbs up the Col de Romme and la Colombière could be the decisive section of the race.

Froome has shown in the past how small attacks and gaps at the top of a final climb or even the penultimate climb can lead to large time advantages on a downhill finish, especially if a rider takes risks on the descent. With so many climbers and GC riders eying stage 12, a surprise push in an early stage could catch some contenders sleeping. While the final descent is 15 km long, a rider who can stay aerodynamic, push power at the right spots, and take some risks could easily put significant time into more timid chasers.

To put it in perspective, an athlete in a super tucked position with a drag of around .18 would be over a minute faster than a more traditional position where drag is close to .27 for the same power. This top time difference would be negated by having to produce power at key times. But as we have seen in the past, Froome can pedal and maintain some power output while staying in the aero-tucked position—it is possible.

Click on the predictive race plan below to see how key factors might affect the results from this stage.